Kimberley Name Meaning & Origin

Kimberley

Origin of the name Kimberley:

Of debated origin, Kimberely seems to be a borrowing of the name of the South African city and diamond-mining center. This Kimberley is though to be derived from kimberlite, a kind of peridotite rock which contains diamonds. Others think it to be derived from Lord Kimberley, whose name is believed to be a compound name composed of an Old English personal name of unknown meaning and lēah (wood, clearing, meadow, enclosure). Kimberely originated as a male name but is now more common as a female name. Var: Kimberlee, Kimberly. Short: Kim. Pet: Kimmi, Kimmie, Kimmy.

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Having a different spelling of a popular name (was a popular girl's baby name in the mid to late 20th) can be a hassle; people misspell your name a lot unless you shorten it. I would have choosen the nickname Kimber if I had thought of it, but I figured it was either Kim or Kimberley and I was too young and impatient to keep reminding people that my name has an extra "e" which is between the "l" and the "y"; Kimberley not Kimberly and not Kimberely. Now I stick to my guns and make sure that my name is spelled correctly since I much prefer Kimberley to Kim.

Personally I never liked "Kim" for myself; I've known some nice Kims some of whom were not Kimberleys, but just plain Kim. Kim is too plain for me and heroines (especially those who inspire me) always have names with at least two syllables (sometimes more than two); also I hate the nickname Kimmy (no matter how it's spelled), the neighbors dog was Kimmey and also Kimbie (anyone remember Kimbie diapers?) and I don't like it when people spell my name wrong such as "Kimberly" or "Kimberely" it shows their not paying attention to details and it doesn't look like my name or that the item is for me. I much preferred Kimberley or nicknames like Kimba which my teammates on the High School Junior Varsity basketball team called me; or Kimber; I even liked being called "Kimbraley" by my bestfriend's little boy (of course that spelling could get teasing, but my friend's little boy was just mixing the vowel and the "r" around and it sounded nice from him).

Hi, sometimes I am concerned about the correct spelling of my name, especially when it comes to important matters, such as airline tickets, drivers license, legal maters, etcetera, even though I am careful to make it clear, and it still appears incorrectly.

I am Kimberley; I met someone once who told me that the name Kimberley might be derived from an African name that sounds like Kemba-lay which means "white lioness in the field". (Anyone remember the cartoon show "Kimba the white lion" or am I aging myself?) Since I have a baby name book that says Kim means ruler and Kimberley (once a surname, became a place name, then a boy's name died out in popularity and became a girl's name) means ruler's field or ruler's meadow; I thought the African name appropriate. And oh yeah my baby name book also said that Beverly means field or meadow and I wondered if "berley" might be a derivative of Beverly. I've also been told of a Kimberley who is called Berley and a Kimber leighAnne or maybe Kimber leann which sounds like my name Kimberley Anne.